A Word from the President - Villanova University

for a Democratic Society all wanted
change. Bob Dylan sang about the times
that were changing. Bobby Kennedy
talked of a new nation. Martin Luther
King had a dream.
That hope, that dream, that we can
be a catalyst for change, has sustained
me through a career of trying to make a
better world for the poorest of the poor.
I started with CRS right out of the
Peace Corps. I got rejected at first. They
said I wanted too much money when I
asked for $6,500! But I persisted because
I knew then what I wanted.
I’ve seen some horrible things. I was
there in Ethiopia in the famine of the
’80s when they were stacking dead
children like cords of wood. In the late
’80s I stood at a collapsed high school in
the Philippines after a terrible earthquake
and listened helplessly to the
screams and calls of children trapped in
the rubble. I knew people whose limbs
were hacked off in Sierra Leone, and I
saw the aftermath of the tsunami in Asia
…entire communities wiped out, people
who saw family members swept away in
flood waters. I’ve felt the shock and pain
of learning that former colleagues and
friends from my years with CRS in
Africa had died from AIDS.
But I’ve also seen miracles created
by smart, dedicated people.
• Clean water cutting childhood deaths
from diarrheal disease by half.
• Although devastated by the tsunami,
peace coming to Aceh Province in
Indonesia after 20 years of war.
• Antiretroviral drugs giving life back
to people carried into hospitals to die.
Last week I heard from a woman in
Fond des Negres, Haiti, who had contracted
AIDS. Her husband left her as
her health deteriorated, her hair fell out
and her body suffered from severe
shingles. After months of suffering, her
friends convinced her to go for HIV
Fast Fact: Villanova University is one of just five Catholic
institutions of higher learning to collaborate with Catholic Relief
Services to deepen the shared missions to further global justice
and peace and build solidarity.
testing. Six months later, she is on
therapy and her life is renewed again.
Things can change almost miraculously.
Today, we are once again hearing calls
for change. We hear from the people
who want to be the next president of our
country. We hear it from ordinary people
who are concerned about the rising cost
of food… the uncertainty of our supply
of energy… the danger of global warming
and … the threat of terrorism.
2008 is an uncertain time for our
nation and the world. We are facing
some daunting challenges: war, terrorism,
global warming and a worldwide
food crisis.
The good news for you and for me ―
is that you are smarter, you are better
trained and you are more aware than the
college graduates of a generation ago.
You have had the benefits of living in a
more diverse environment and on a more
diverse campus than I did.
On this most auspicious day, a day of
new beginnings, of a new journey, this is
what I want you to know: that you can
make a difference. That you can transform
the world. As you leave here, you
take with you the excellent education
you’ve received, and the core values of
the Augustinian tradition of Villanova:
Veritas, Unitas and Caritas. Let me focus
on each for a bit.
Veritas: Truth. Not Stephen Colbert’s
truthiness—(what we want to be truth)
but what is right. Look for it. Take time
to reason toward the truth. Use faith in
that quest. Don’t jump at something
simply because it pays a lot or it offers
prestige. Follow your heart, embrace your
passion. Discern what is right and true.
Unitas: Look out beyond your
immediate surroundings and engage the
world. Catholic tradition tells us that we
are one human family. Globalization is
showing us that we are interconnected
politically, economically and socially —
for good or ill. Many of you have
experienced a world beyond Pennsylvania,
beyond the Main Line, to our
cities and around the world. You have
done service trips and seen a chunk of
the world in service. You know that
people, after the externalities come off,
are the same no matter where they live.
Caritas: Whether you are making
millions or are hardly making ends meet,
do something for others. It will make
you feel great. It will make you feel like
your life is worthwhile. And you may
make a difference in someone else’s life.
A couple of months ago, during the
March Madness broadcasts, there was a
commercial that proclaimed The Power
of Villanova. It may have been the work
of an ad agency, but I think there’s
something to it. You all know something
about being powerful. The Power of
Villanova was very much on display in
this year’s March Madness — when you
Wildcats advanced to the Sweet 16 for
the third time in four years!
As you embark on the next phase of
the incredible journey you have ahead of
you, realize the power you have. You are
the Power of Villanova. You have the
power to touch people and change lives.
You have the power to engage and
impact the world.
You are powerful beyond measure.
Use your power well.
Summer 2008 21